Wheel mounted winch drum for vehicles



July 16, 1968 MccAlN 3,392,961

WHEEL MOUNTED WINCH DRUM FOR VEHICLES Filed Dec. 19, 1966 3o 28 L 2O o M |a 22 lg n 66 32 4O 34 E i] 46 26 FIG I E 42 I I I 46 INVENTOR. JACK L. MCCAIN ATTORNEY United States Patent Oflice 3,392,961 Patented July 16, 1968 3,392,961 WHEEL MOUNTED WINCH DRUM FOR VEHICLES Jack L. McCain, 2160 Riverview St., Eugene, Oreg. 97403 Filed Dec. 19, 1966, Ser. No. 602,662 3 Claims. (Cl. 254166) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE This invention relates to a wheel mounted winch drum for vehicles. More particularly, the invention is concerned with a winch drum capable of being secured to a driving wheel of a vehicle and capable of receiving cable means or the like whereby the winch drum can apply a pulling power to the cable for operating a load or for pulling the vehicle from a stuck position.

Winches have heretofore been attachable to drive wheels of vehicles for the purpose of applying power to a load or for removing the vehicle from a stuck position. Such prior winches have served the intended purpose but are cumbersome to the extent that once the winch drum is applied to the wheel the line is not easily unwound from the drum for the purpose of attaching the end of the line to a load, as when the winch drum is to be used for removing the vehicle from a stuck position.

Briefly state, the present invention comprises a winch drum formed basically of two parts, one of such parts comprising a base member arranged to be secured detachably to a vehicle drive wheel and the other part comprising a winch drum arranged to be detachably secured to the base member. More particularly, the winch drum is not only detachably secured to the base member but has an intermediate attaching condition which provides for free wheeling of the drum on the base member. Such a combination of structure accomplishes an important objective in that it provides a simplified wheel mounted Winch drum and one which has a novel arrangement allowing selected free wheeling when it is desired to un wind cable freely from the drum. The invention also includes other novel structure and objectives serving to accomplish the above result, including novel connecting structure for a cable.

In the drawings:

FIGURE 1 is a horizontal cross sectional view of the present winch drum as applied to a vehicle wheel, this view being taken on the line 11 of FIGURE 3 and being enlarged relatively to such figure. This view shows the drum secured to the base member in a drive connection;

FIGURE 2 is a fragmentary sectional view taken similar to FIGURE 1 but showing a free wheeling position of the drum with relation to the base member;

FIGURE 3 is a sectional view taken on the line 3 -3 of FIGURE 1, a portion of a flange of the drum being omitted for clarity;

FIGURE 4 is a fragmentary sectional view taken on the line 44 of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 5 is a fragmentary sectional view taken on the line 55 of FIGURE 1; and

FIGURE 6 is a fragmentary elevational view taken on the line 66 of FIGURE 1.

Referring now to the drawings, the wheel mounted winch drum of the instant invention is designated generally by the numeral 10 in FIGURES 1, 2 and 3 and is shown attached to a drive wheel 12 of a vehicle. With reference to FIGURE 1 the vehicle wheel 12 is shown as having the usual wheel flange 14, a hub 16, and a plurality of wheel mounting bolts 18. With particular reference now to FIGURE 5, the wheel flange 14 of conventional wheels is usually provided with radially extending ribs or projections 20 which serve to strengthen the wheel.

The wheel mounted winch drum 10 is formed basically of two parts, comprising a base or attaching member 22 and a drum 24. The base member 22 includes a projecting hub portion 26 which is hollow and open at one end for receiving the hub 16 of the vehicle. Base member 22 has a peripheral flange 28 provided with selectively located apertures 30. These apertures are engaged by the wheel bolts 18 for securing the base member to a wheel. It is desired that some of the apertures 30 be enlarged to freely receive the wheel bolts and that some of the apertures be of a size for clamping engagement by said wheel bolts. By this arrangement the base member can be secured to a wheel by removing only a part of the wheel bolts and at the same time the wheel does not have to be removed from the vehicle. Intermediate the apertured portions of the flange 28 are radially extending channel-shaped portions 32, FIGURES 1 and 5, which in a mounted position of the base member overlie the projections 20 in order that the said base member will lie flat against the wheel 12. The projections 20 are intended to be exemplary of any type of wheel projections that may exist on vehicle wheels, and the channel-shaped portions 32 are intended to accommodate all types of such projections.

The hub portion 26 of the base member has an end defining wall 34 provided with a pair of diametrically aligned apertures or sockets 36. These apertures are elliptical in shape and have their major axes extending in a direction normal to the diametral line on which the apertures are located. In addition to the apertures 36 being elliptical in shape, they have a longitudinal curvature concentric with the axis of the hub portion 26. In addition, such apertures have tapered front and rear walls 37, FIGURE 4, the widened portion of the aperture being directed toward the drum mounted side of the end wall 34.

The drum 24 comprises an elongated hollow winding portion 38 on which a cable or other line means is adapted to be wound. The drum has a pair of end flanges 40 and 42 for confining a cable in Wrapped condition on the winding portion 38. The drum is held detachably on the base member 22 by means of a bolt 44 extending axially through the hollow winding portion 38 and having threaded connection with a tapped bore 46 in the end wall 34 of the hub portion 26. The drum 24 is thus readily attachable to or detachable from the base member 22 as desired. The hub 26 of the base member 22 is of minimum outward projecting dimension so that with the drum 24 detached, such base member can be left on the wheel permanently without being conspicuous; and furthermore if the wheel normally has a hub cap, the reduced dimension of such base member permits the hub cap to be installed While said base member is on the wheel.

The end of the drum which is directed toward the base member 22 has a pair of projections 46 selectively located so as to be received in the apertures 36 in the attached position of the drum 24. As best seen in FIGURE 3, the projections 46, similar to the apertures 36, are elliptical in structure and they have a curvature concentric with the axis of the hub. Projections 46 also have tapered end walls 47, FIGURE 4, so as to be contoured similar to the apertures 36. The cross sectional dimension of the projections 46 is slightly less than that of the apertures 36, however, in order that the projections 46, although being aranged to provide an integral non-rotating connection between the base member 22 and the drum, can free themselves readily from said apertures. More particularly, it may at times be desired that the drum 24 have a free wheeling support on the base member 22 in which case the bolt 44 is backed ofl sufficiently to permit clearance of projections 46 from the apertures 36. The drum can then free wheel whereupon line can be unwound rapidly and conveniently. When the operator gives a slight tug on the line the drum, as a result of the tapered end wall construction of the apertures 36 and projections 46, pushes itself away from the base member 22, assuming of course that the bolt 44 has been sufliciently backed off. Thus, after backing off the bolt 44 sufiiciently to allow the projections 46 to clear themselves from the apertures 36, the drum need not be pulled out manually for free wheeling but will automatically move away from the attaching member 22 when a slight tug is applied to the line, and furthermore the tapered construction of the apertures 36 and projections 46 will maintain the drum in its free wheeling position as long as the bolt 44 is backed off. Bolt 44 acts as a spindle for the drum in the free wheeling rotation of the latter,

The outside flange 42 of the drum has an aperture 48 which extends radially in the flange and which has a pair of inwardly leading, angular extensions 50. Aperture 48 is sufiiciently enlarged to receive a ferrule 52 secured on one end of a cable which is to be wound on the drum but extensions 50 are smaller so that such ferrule can be locked therebehind. To attach the cable to the drum, the ferrule is inserted through the enlarged aperture 48 and locked behind one of the reduced size aperture extensions 50. The projecting extensions 50 extend at an obtuse angle from each other and provide for attachment of the cable to the drum and winding thereon in either direction of rotation.

It is to be understood that the form of my invention herein shown and described is to be taken as a preferred example of the same and that various changes in the shape, size and arrangement of parts may be resorted to without departing from the spirit of my invention or the scope of the subjoined claims.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

1. A wheel mounted winch for use with a vehicle having a driving wheel secured to wheel supporting means by a pluraity of wheel bolts, said driving wheel having a hub projecting therefrom and a removable hub cap, said winch comprising:

(a) a base member having lateral flange means arranged for receiving the wheel bolts to mount said base member on the driving wheel;

(b) said base member having an end socket for receiving the wheel hub and being of flattened construction whereby when attached to a wheel a hub cap can be placed on the wheel over the base member,

(c) a one piece drum having end flanges for confining wrapped portions of a line thereon; and

(d) a spindle projecting through said drum and having detachable connection with said base member for detachably securing said drum to said base member,

(e) said spindle being in the form of a bolt having threaded engagement in said base to accomplish said detachable connection and having a head on the outside of the drum with relation to said detachable connection whereby to be available for turning to tighten the drum on the base member for secure driving rotation therewith and to loosen the drum for free wheeling with relation to the base member, at least one projection on one of said base member and drum, and means defining a socket in the other of said base member and drum for receiving said projection to provide a driving connection between said base member and said drum, the threaded engagement of said spindle with said end wall being arranged such that said spindle can be threadedly backed off an amount sufiicient to still hold the drum on the base member but to permit disengagement of said projection and socket and allow free wheeling rotation of said drum, said projection having wall portions tapered to a reduced dimension toward the outer end thereof whereby said tapered wall portions upon engaging defining walls of said socket as a result of a rotable force applied to said drum to urge the projection out of said socket to provide the free wheeling of said drum.

2. The wheel mounted winch of claim 1 including at least one projection on one of said base member and drum, and means defining a socket in the other of said base member and drum for receiving said projection to provide said driving connection between said base memher and said drum.

3. The wheel mounted winch of claim 1 wherein said socket is defined by wall means some of which are tapered in the same direction as engaging wall portions of said projection.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,289,005 12/1918 Rousseau 242-95 1,325,658 12/1919 Rousseau 242-95 2,683,584 7/1954 Selberg.

3,099,416 7/ 1963 Wright 242-95 RICHARD E. AEGERTER, Primary Examiner. EVON C. BLUNK, Examiner.

H. C. HORNSBY, Assistant Examiner. 

